updated 07:05 pm EST, Thu December 1, 2011

Smartphones, in contrast, compliment viewing

A recent research study from carrier Orange has that, in Europe, tablet usage cannibalizes TV viewing. In contrast, smartphones tend to complement TV consumption. The research also found that tablet users are more likely to make purchases using the device than their handset counterparts.

It was conducted by the independent research house TNS. In all, 5,000 British, French, Spanish and Polish mobile device users were surveyed on their media habits. There was significant variation between countries, but a common behavior was that consumers used smartphones to "kill time" when there was no access to other screens, while they used tablets to "save time" because they were perceived as efficient.

"The findings are quite stark in their description of how people are using devices," said Bruce Hoang, group marketing director of Orange Advertising Network. "Clearly the one-size-fits-all approach for digital content across TV, PC, smartphone and tablet does not work."

Amongst the findings, researchers found that in the UK, 39 percent of the respondents watch TV on their tablet instead of on a TV. Also, 35 percent of tablet users regularly watch on-demand content, and 40 percent regularly view streamed content.

Tablet user purchasing showed a similar split. Across the study, TNS found that tablet users were 50 percent more likely to make a purchase than were mobile users. Although not directly explained, the more desktop-like experience and use at home would have helped versus the tendency to use smartphones while out and only for quick tasks like finding directions. [viaAdAge]